The Mormons

 

Shortly after we moved to Farmington, we found out where the library was.

Since both of us are avid readers, having a library within 5 miles of our home was a requirement.

On the way back from the library one day, we drove past a beautiful church, but did not notice any signs out front telling us what it was.

Less than two weeks later, we got the answer when a couple of young ladies came to our front door. As is turned out, they were Mormons, and they told us that the building we had passed was the local Mormon temple.

Like most people, we do not know much about the Mormon religion, but it IS   a popular religion in New Mexico.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has approximately 68,700 members across 137 congregations in New Mexico.

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• 1830 (April 6): The church was officially established organized in Fayette, New York by Joseph Smith.

 

History and Demographics

 

• Early Presence: The Mormon Battalion passed through Santa Fe and Wagon Mound in 1846 during the Mexican-American War, and permanent roots grew in the region starting in the 1860s and 1895.
• Refugees: Many local settlements absorbed Latter-day Saint refugees fleeing the Mexican Revolution in 1912.
• Population Share: Members make up roughly 3.3% of the state's recorded church membership populace, ranking as the third-largest denomination in New Mexico. Most users on Reddit agree that while areas near Kirtland and Farmington have a noticeable presence, it is far less dominant than in neighboring Utah.

 

Although the Mormons have been in New Mexico for over 100 years, the first Mormon temple was not built until March 5, 2020, and it was built in Albuquerque.

 

The second temple was built in Farmington.

The Farmington temple was dedicated on August 17, 2025, so it is a very recent addition to the town. It serves the Four Corners region, which includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and the Navajo Nation.

 

Throughout America, there are 208 temples in operation. 

Approximately 106,000 to 108,000 Navajo people live in New Mexico, making it the state with the second-largest Navajo population after Arizona.

Population Details

  

• Total in New Mexico: About 108,300 individuals, according to census data and tribal estimates.
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• Proportion: Roughly one-third of the total Navajo population resides in New Mexico.
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• The Reservation: A large portion of these residents live in the eastern section of the Navajo Nation reservation, which extends across northwestern New Mexico, northeastern Arizona, and southeastern Utah

 I am a firm believer in the value of living in a country that has a diversity of religion and cultures, so the Republican anxiety about DEI is absolute hogwash.

After we moved to Evanston, Illinois, I discovered that the town had nearly 100 churches, so I decide to visit as many of them as I could.

I made it to roughly 65 before I finally ran out of steam.

Every Thanksgiving, the town has a celebration that brings together people from a variety of faiths, and I attended one of those meetings the last year that we lived in Evanston.

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2010/11/thanksgiving-with-enemy.html

Thera are far too many people in America who believe that America is a Christian country.

It’s not.

If you are an educated individual, you also are aware of the dangers of Christian nationalism:

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2022/08/christian-nationalism.html

Further, there is no such thing as the one true religion

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-one-true-religion.html

We attended a church service in Minnesota a few years back to celebrate a family event.

Rather than talking about the value of marriage, the priest went into a diatribe that said that if you did not believe the things he believed in, you were wrong.

After listening to that nonsense for nearly an hour, my wife and I vowed to never set foot in a Catholic church again - and we haven’t.

Some of my friends in China were Muslims, and I worked with people in Evanston who also followed the faith.

I am one of the few people you may know that has actually read the Koran, and I have two copies on one of our bookshelves.

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2009/06/book-of-signs.html

I also wrote a book report about the manuscript, book, which turned into an article that was more than 4000 words long.

https://tohell-andback.blogspot.com/2021/08/what-vietnam-can-teach-us-about-koran.html

After he retired, my cousin Jim and his wife attended mass every single day, which is exactly what his father had done. Today, we also know other people who do the same thing.

We also have friends and relatives who are atheists - and we also know  some folks who are homosexuals.

Those differences in religion and sexuality do not bother me at all.

If you want to start an argument with somebody, all you have to do is to bring up religion or politics.

The best thing you can do is to try to respect everyone’s opinion, because no one’s opinion is ever wrong.

It is simply their opinion – so don’t waste time trying to convince them of the errors of their way.

Although Sharon and I COULD actually attend a service at the local Mormon temple, we are not likely to do so.

For now, it is enough for me to know that Farmington has a variety of places that people can attend to satisfy their religious needs – and that is enough for me.